During my boarding school years, missing my father made me look for scribbles on old paper, as if to express my feelings. One day, Professor and sculptor Diep Minh Chau happened to see those drawings. He brought them to the Board of Directors of the Vietnam University of Fine Arts (at that time, it was the Indochina College of Fine Arts). Thanks to that, I was specially admitted to the 7-year program, a wonderful start to my artistic journey.

Author Van Duong Thanh with his works in the exhibition. Photo: THAI PHUONG

At the age of 12, I entered the school. The first impression of the school was the Greek statues, over two and a half meters high, a gift from the Soviet Union University of Fine Arts, standing tall in the middle of the tree-lined campus. The two-story building on the left has an ancient beauty, once the residence and work of the French professor and painter Victor Tardieu. To this day, the building still retains its original appearance with a hundred-year-old ceramic gutter and two beautiful “Harvest Day” reliefs by French teachers.

The principal at that time was the famous painter Tran Van Can, a talented and exemplary teacher. Lecturers such as Luong Xuan Nhi, Pham Gia Giang, Vu Giang Huong, Nguyen Trong Cat, Phuong Trinh, Diep Minh Chau... were all famous masters of Vietnamese fine arts. I still remember a memory in 1962, when the school gate was hit by a car and two wooden bars broke, Mr. Tran Van Can personally mixed paint and painted over the new wooden bars, making everyone think they were old wood, the colors were so harmonious that no one noticed the replacement.

My class had only a few students, coming from all over the country. Besides the children of famous painters, there were children from the front line and 6 Pathet Lao soldiers. The selection was very strict, the curriculum was rich: from painting, sculpture, architecture, stage design to book design. The teachers always encouraged students to be creative, teaching us to find our own voice. I always remember the words of teacher Tran Luu Hau: "Find your own artistic voice".

An unforgettable memory was when I painted “Laying the foundation for the construction of the workers’ cultural area”. Canvas and oil paints were very rare at that time, so after being graded, the drawings were often submerged in water to remove the paint and reuse it. I asked the person in charge to keep the work and send it to the Capital Fine Arts Exhibition. Later, the work won an award and was bought by the Vietnam Fine Arts Museum. The first rewards in my life were colored pens, which I gave to the elderly artists, and simple but sweet donuts to treat my friends.

Since 1964, the war has spread, we left school to go to the countryside to avoid bombs and bullets. The classrooms were built in half-submerged bunkers, but the learning atmosphere was still bustling. Living with farmers, we practiced planting rice, pounding rice, threshing rice, creating experiences that helped us understand the working life, and then the countryside became a deep source of inspiration for my paintings later. Sometimes, we students followed our teachers' footsteps to the fire lines, construction sites, river ports, and fields to sketch. Sometimes in Lang Son , sometimes to Ham Rong Bridge (Thanh Hoa)... Each stroke was filled with emotions about soldiers, farmers, and youth volunteers - images that nurtured my creative inspiration later.

The seven years of school were a difficult yet brilliant time. We studied both general education to graduate from high school and fine arts to become artists. Despite the hardships, we still learned foreign languages, learned music, and nurtured the dream of creating and serving the country. Although most of the paintings of that time were lost due to the war, the memories of those days still shine brightly in my mind.

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the Vietnam University of Fine Arts, I returned to visit the school. Meeting Mr. Nguyen Trong Cat, the former head teacher, who is now 95 years old and still lucid and healthy, I was deeply moved. Old friends, those who are taking on important responsibilities in the art world, those who have become famous in free creation, are all proof of the lasting tradition of the hundred-year-old school - Indochina Fine Arts - Vietnam Fine Arts - where many generations of painters have been nurtured, will always be a sacred memory and a spiritual support throughout my creative journey.

    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/van-hoa/doi-song/cai-noi-nuoi-duong-tai-nang-hoa-si-cho-dat-nuoc-1010467